posted on 2025-04-15, 23:48authored byCarla BlackwoodCarla Blackwood, Melody Eotvos, Molly Kadarauch, Rhodri Clarke, Stefan Cassomenos
Carla Blackwood was a featured artists in 5 concerts across the weekend of the Port Fairy Spring Music Festival 2024. Her performances included a World Premiere, an Australian premiere, performances on modern and historical horns, solo performances and performances in trio and quintet formations. She contributed curatorial ideas to the festival's "Cosmos" theme as well as featuring as a performer across the festival.<p></p>
The field of research is music performance. The festival engaged with the concept of how creatives have responded to the magnitude and mysterium of the universe since time began. My own performances engaged with how the horn has been used as an instrument to engage with the magic and expanse of the the universe, and how composers from Mozart to the present day have been inspired by the horn's associations with nature and the expanse of its sound. My performances raised the question of how the justaposition of world premieres with Mozart on natural horn brings new perspectives to how we receive music works, both as performer and audience.
The performance of the world premiere Melody Eotvos' "Shivelight" for horn, violin and piano, and the Australian premiere of Luke Style's "A Shot at the Stars" are significant contributions to Australian music and the growth of our musical culture. The juxtaposition of these works with Messiaen's "Appel Interstellaire," Andrew Ford's "A Martian Sends a Postcard Home" and Mozart's Horn Quintet (performed on natural horn), within the broader context of myriad other works in the festival, allowed for all works to perceived in new ways, placing them within a broader reflection on the majesty of the cosmos.
It is a significant form of peer review to be asked to feature as an artist in five concerts across the course of a festival alongside such esteemed musicians from around Australia, including members of the Australian Chamber Orchestra and myriad other esteemed ensembles.